Long Time, No hear

It's been a LONG time since I've even gotten a chance to think about updating this thing. I hate that my crazy life is now so limited with work, school, and wedding planning. :) I haven't even logged into this thing in OVER a MONTH.... just CRAZY... well, for me! Since 2012 has rolled around... the wedding planning has really been in full swing, and tons of details are in the making. AS OF TODAY... IT IS EXACTLY 4 MONTHS AWAY!!!!
 I never thought the time would come. :) Brent and I went to register this weekend at Bed, Bath and Beyond and Target. Talk about exhausting... but also exciting at the same time. First time I have ever done 5 hours of hardcore shopping and not bought one. single. thing. Our engagement pictures by EMBY photography turned out even better than I imagined they would. Here are JUST a few of our absolute favorites...

EMBY and I are already scheming up idea's for my bridals... EEEK!

WELL... this Saturday I am gaining ANOTHER sweet amazing SISTER! Yep, it's already here!!! My brother Chase and his fiance Robyn's wedding DAY!!! I can't believe how fast time has FLOWN by. Seems like just yesterday he was planning the surprise proposal that turned out perfect... you can read about it here. I'll be sure...maybe :) ... hopefully... two months from now... to do a post with pictures from the weekend. :) I know she is going to be beautiful.

My sweet lifetime long friend Blaire is having baby #2 in February... so I helped throw just a small "sprinkle" for her and sweet Madi Kay.

She had a great turn out and got lots of precious things to welcome her new precious baby home in just a few weeks.

My cousin Emily had her baby JAYCE on the 9th...

 

We joked with her that she named him by putting both of my brother's names together...

JAKE and CHASE. :)

He is PERFECTLY BEAUTIFUL!

Oh, and just one reason why I LOVE my job...

I have my precious babies convinced I am Justin Bieber's cousin. So when they doubted me, I came up with this hilarious, but LEGIT, picture of my and my "cuz". Their sweet faces when they saw this picture was priceless.

Have a wonderful weekend!!!

These are a few of my favorite things...

I have been MIA from my blog for a few months... and surprisingly I've gotten a few requests asking if I'd update. :) I am just thrilled someone actually takes a look at this thing. Where has this year gone? December already.... I'm loving it. So since it is the first day of my favorite months... I decided to list just a few of my favorite things.

• 1. TRESemme Extra Firm Control Hair spray

This hairspray is my most favorite, out of all I have tried. It has such a firm hold ALL day long... and if your like me and washing your hair is something that doesn't happen often :) When you wake up the next morning after wearing it all day the day before, it doesn't have the crispy gross feel like most sprays leave you with.

• 2. Angelika Blush by NARS

If you are on the look out for a new blush, look no more. This blush is amazing, last all day long, and a little goes a LONG way. It comes in 21 different colors.

• 3. L'oreal Sublime Bronze Self-Tanning Lotion

This self-tanner has NEVER done me wrong. I have used it for 4 years, and still LOVE the results. I usually shower, then apply. It dries SO quick, doesn't leave you looking orange, and you are tan within 7 hours!

• 4. Shazam, Pinterest, Dish Network, Pandora, Lose it, and Photoshop Express

These are 6 app's for the iPhone that I don't think I could live without. Shazam is great for when you hear a song and want to know who the artist is... just tap it and SHAZAM :) you got it within 20 sec. Pinterest, well.... need I say more? If you have not been to this website... check it out IMMEDIATELY, you won't be sorry! Dish Network, or any other satellite carrier, has an app where you can login and DVR (record) things on-the-go... GENIUS! Pandora is awesome for music listening... even on the go. Lose-it is great for keeping record of your calories, workouts, etc. I have tried a lot of different ones and have always gone back to Lose-it.. defiantly a favorite. Photoshop express is for editing pictures... very easy to use... LOVE!

• 5. Clinique Redness Solution Make-up

For anyone that knows me, knows I have natural red cheeks and that I despise them. I ran into this secret weapon this summer... and it is awesome!!! I have always used Clinque's dramatically different lotion before applying my make-up... which is another one of my favorites.

Along with my favorite go to long lasting lipstick by clinique... in the color THINK BRONZE.

• 6. Skippy Natural Peanut Butter

If you are a peanut butter lover like me, this is the best tasting and the best good-for-you natural peanut butter you can buy. I could eat it with a spoon... :)

• 7. Knee High Socks with boots

I am loving this look for winter... Not only do these tall socks keep your legs and feet cozy, they are also precious. I have found tons of them at target, Marshall's, and TJ maxx... some for just $2.50!!! Defiantly a must buy.

• 8. Cricut Machine

I have been eyeing this genius machine for months and finally found one for $70 at Michael's on Black Friday. If you have never heard or used one of these bad boys... they are basically a die cut machine, and they are awesome for cutting things out! The possibilities are endless... I can't wait to get a project going.

• 9. Mod Podge

I find myself using this stuff weekly... for whatever it may be! I am constantly coming up with something to slap some mod podge on.

• 10. Dr. Pepper Bold

I have always had a love for Dr. Pepper... so much that I used to drink THREE a day. That is a whopping 450 calories!!!!! I came to the realization that I just could no longer afford to have that many calories in my daily calorie intake, so I stopped drinking them cold turkey and went to water all day. I still drink water throughout my whole day, but I usually have one Diet Dr. Pepper... which I love. But recently I came across this Dr. Pepper Bold that just has 10 calories for an 8 fl ounce. It is basically like an in between diet and regular... and tastes WONDERFUL!

Made by you Monday: Pom-Pom Flower Headband Tutorial

I have really been on a headband kick lately and have been itching to make some. I made a trip to hobby lobby and got busy. For this precious pom all you will need chiffon material in whichever color pom you love, pre-cut squares of felt in whatever color (can be found in any craft section), GOOD cutting scissors, hot glue gun and back up sticks, and stretchy headbands (I prefer goody) which again can be in the color of your choice.

Start by tracing about 1 1/2 inch circles onto your chiffon, I used the top edge of a small cup.

You will need about 30-35 circles depending on how full you want your flower. I traced about 8 circle and just added layers underneath the chiffon so you aren't having to cut so many individually (this is only if you have GOOD scissors).

Once you have all of your circles cut out, you then trace about a 3 inch (again depending on your size preference) circle onto your felt and fold in half and cut, so that you have two the same size.

Then just grab a circle of your chiffon from the middle and fold up as you would do with tissue paper when putting it in a gift sack.

Hot glue the tip, and glue in the center of one of your pieces of the felt.

 Just keep folding and gluing circles around the middle until you have filled the whole circle.

You can definitely see how full and even the flower is on all sides, and just add as you need to... it's pretty much fail proof!!! Once you have you pom the way you want it flip it over and add glue to the center of the felt, and lay your headband on the glue... hold it there for a few seconds so its secure.

 Then just add glue around the whole piece of felt and grab felt circle #2 and lay on the glue.

 I then go around with my scissors and cut off excess felt that was not used, and make sure none of the felt is lifting up, if so add glue!

 I'm thinking you could even add this to a clip also. .

I even made a few for Brent's niece Emma, to spunk up her school uniform attire :)

Happy Pom-poming!

Have a wonderful week!

Linking here.

Sleep Shopper/Teacher Appreciation Gift

Hi all!!! It's been a while but I'm finally adjusted to me new routine and back in business. So, you've heard of sleep walkers, sleep talkers, and sleep eaters... but what about sleep shoppers? Can this even be possible? I keep asking myself the same thing, because low and behold... I AM GUILTY OF SLEEP SHOPPING! I wake up in the morning to confirmation e-mails of my mysterious middle of the night purchases. The first time it happened was about 6 months ago when I bought a pair of leather steve madden boots online at 2:15 in the morning that were not at all my style... but were my size and everything.

I know this wasn't fraud because at this certain time I was shopping for boots but never found any I liked. So I ignored this little incidence and sent the boots back and was refunded. 2 months rolls around, and I get another confirmation e-mail of a flower headband that came with a free dream catcher??? Cute headband... but not so cute that I would of bought online.

Since that one was just a small purchase I went ahead and kept the heandband but chunked the dream catcher. That was 3 months ago and this past saturday morning I wake up to yet again ANOTHER confirmation e-mail that was at 4:07 in the morning. The funniest thing about this purchase... is they are LITTLE girls capri pants.

 Absolutley precious pants I must say, but they could fit a toddler. Since I purcheased them on Etsy though and didn't specify my size, in my sleep, to the lady I explained to her the next morning in an e-mail that I "didn't realize" they were little girls. HA... I was so not about to tell this lady this weird habit of mine. She wrote back this weekend, laughed and said... actually I would love to accomodate these to fit your size. So, I guess in a sense I started a new "women's line" for her. I am beyond thinking this is a problem now. I think I have decided to sleep with my phone on my dresser now and not under my pillow. Crazy, crazy, crazy.

Anyways, I'm back to work full time and a full time semester of school myself. Let's just say that my theme song for this school year is going to be "Just Breathe" by Anna Nalick. Looking forward to getting so much done though. Speaking of a new school year... One of my friends, Heather got a job at one of the elementary schools here in Ennis as a 2nd grade teacher. I wanted to do something for her for the first day of school and tried to come up with different ideas for weeks and finally came up with a Teacher survival kit

Thought this would be such an easy teacher appreciation gift idea also. I just bough a plastic container at Walmart, modpodged each side with scrapbook paper, and filled it inside with goodies.

 On each goodie I had a little note with a saying of how it could be used to survive the school year.

My bother and his fiance took their engagement pictures last weekend with the amazing Melissa Butler with Emby Photography.  Here is just a sneak peak...

 

She def. did it again... they are all SO perfect. Love this sweet couple :)

Brent and I take ours in October, I can't wait! Speaking of October... As I am sitting here updating, it is 87 degrees outside at 3:00 in the afternoon. I am beyond excited to feel that cool weather slowly sneaking in. This past weekend was a wonderful, long, and relaxing one. I always enjoy relaxing weekends of no plans.

So if you havent heard or experienced this awesome site... it's a must, you'll be hooked instantly!!!

It's basically like a big bulletin board that you can look at all kinds of pictures for ideas. Anywhere from creative food recipes, to home decor ideas, to fashion. And the best part of course, there's an iphone app for it... so it's VERY conveniently addictive. You have the option to sign up and start to following people, or just look without an account. Follow me here.

It's so addicting... I have to set a time limit for myself at night that I make myself put my phone down. But now it looks as though I won't be sleeping anywhere near my phone. :)

Have a wonderful week!!!

Linking up here.